Though Toyota spent the last year in the spotlight with recall after recall, it certainly isn’t the only company to suffer automobile troubles in 2010.
According to an article with USAToday.com, General Motors recalled over one million Chevrolet Cobalt models and Pontiac G5 models due to power steering system issues. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is now making noise that the Saturn Ion most likely should have also been part of that recall. Over 600 complaints and about 1,500 warranty claims have been reported from Ion owners.
General Motors, however, is vehemently denying the need for a recall. The article with USAToday.com details how GM claims, “…a power-steering failure shouldn’t increase the risk of accident; the car should still be controllable despite the increased steering effort.”
Now that the NHTSA is involved, the growing situation will be monitored very closely. For something more solid than a faulty power steering system, visit our website for reasonable vehicle shippers costs.
When General Motors went bankrupt, not only were direct employees affected. As the car giant slowly pays back the government for the major bailout , GM is also making sure to fix ties abruptly severed during the fallout.
An article on freep.com shared that General Motors has reconnected with Stillwater Mining Company, who supplied GM with, “…precious metals for emission-reducing catalytic converters.” This relationship lasted ten years before GM took their business to foreign soil for cheaper prices.
Stillwater owns the only mines in the United States that produce platinum and palladium. Many were miffed when GM made other business plans, including Montana Senator Jon Tester. He commented on GM’s return to Stillwater, “It just makes sense for GM to get back in the business from American companies because American taxpayers saved GM.”
This is just icing on the cake for Stillwater, who had a rough stretch as metal prices fell to extreme low during the recession. As times get better, metal prices return to where they were.
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We want to start off this blog by wishing you and yours a happy, safe, and productive New Year! We sincerely hope our vehicle shippers will be number one on your list this year for the most efficient and economic auto transport services.
In other exciting news, the Detroit Free Press ended last month by sharing good news from General Motors. Encouraged by recent developments and the return to the stock market, GM hired a social media company called Big Fuel to help with their latest campaigns. According to the article, “Big Fuel, a 7-year-old New York social-media agency, has chosen Detroit for its first satellite office, becoming the latest advertising agency to follow General Motors market chief…’s encouragement to put employees in downtown Detroit.”
This move is a big one for Big Fuel – 30 employees will be in the new office by the end of January. Some other mid-west accounts will also be housed in this office. If this satellite works well, Big Fuel already shared plans of staking a new office on the West Coast. We wish Big Fuel and General Motors luck in new endeavor.
As the economy comes back from the worst recession in recent memory, car dealers are banking on new models to help drum up business. A small Italian import has many hopes high as it re-enters the American market.
Laura Soave, the head of the Fiat brand in North America, is tremendously optimistic for the Fiat’s latest debut stateside. Soave is quoted on freep.com saying, “You used to have to be pretty wealthy to appreciate an Italian automobile such as a Ferrari or Maserati…Now we can bring that experience into another category.” In a car market that is getting smaller and smaller (literally), the same article with freep.com claims the import is, “…Chrysler’s best hope to compete in a U.S. subcompact and minicar market that is expected to double by 2014.”
The aim is for the under 30 crowd, the mobile, younger crowd living in cities who are looking for a smaller, smarter way to get around than traditional sedans and SUVs. The Fiat brand is also hoping to charm some of the “27 million Italian-Americans” with national pride.
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Electric cars aren’t the only big news in autos for the New Year.
An article with the Detroit Free Press shares Ford’s announcement to incorporate gas-saving technology into several Ford models. The new technology features a start-stop technology that, “…save[s] fuel by turning an engine off when the vehicle is idling and quickly restarting it when the driver release the brake or steps on the gas pedal.”
Ford is excited to report a 6% improvement in fuel economy. According to the article, other car companies have been hesitant to include the new feature. The reason for this? “The testing method the [EPA] uses to determine fuel efficiency ratings doesn’t include many stops and thus doesn’t recognize the technology’s effectiveness.” Other car makers have been depending on more proven methods of fuel saving, such as sleeker and lighter models.
But as of 2016, the EPA is going to become much stricter with fuel economy in new vehicles. There are predictions that this is when the start/stop technology will be popping up in many more models.
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The major meat-and-potato auto companies have been hogging the vehicle spotlight as of late (General Motors, we mean you), but this winter, there’s buzz in the luxury brands as well.
An article on autoweek.com shared Porsche’s discussion of possibly developing a small-scale SUV “…and a sports car smaller than the Boxster as it aims to double worldwide sales in the next three years.” The reason for this? Bernard Maier, the man in charge of sales and marketing with Porsche AG, shared that, “…the company is looking into smaller and less expensive models ‘but we have taken no decision so far.’”
This SUV would be a great way for Porsche to stay fresh in the global market, increase sales and “follow the growth plan of the company.” Our auto shipper companies think Maier would be wise to do so. If all the other major auto producers are going smaller, it would be in Porsche’s best interest to do the same.
As the economy slowly recovers, automakers know how important it is right now to create vehicles that not only serve their loyal markets, but to expand into new ones. Chrysler is hip to this idea, and is choosing to try to sink hooks into the luxury market. Those of us who have followed Chrysler throughout the years watched the auto giant attempt this with the Sebring – which didn’t garner the results they hoped it would.
This time around, according to an article with autoweek.com, Chrysler is again attempting, “another shot at the vast mid-sized sedan market, a target it missed badly with the Sebring.” The new “200” model will be aimed at the more urban set with, “refined design, luxury touches inside, a quiet ride and responsive handling – at affordable prices.”
According to the same article, “’Chrysler’s mission is to bridge the gap between aspiration and ownership.” Our auto shipper companies are interested to see how well this gap merges.
Toyota, like every other car company currently, is spending a lot of time on creating and improving on electric and hybrid cars. According to autoweek.com, they also have not forgotten to keep working on other technology – and their focus is paying off in the progression of the internal combustion engine.
In order to improve fuel efficiency in vehicles, Toyota is now installing turbochargers and “direct fuel injection” into their cars. With these new additions to their vehicles, engine size is decreasing.
Another trend implemented in Toyota’s vehicles is, “…expanded use of idle-stop technology, which saves fuel by turning off the engine when the car comes to a standstill, and advances in variable valve systems.”
All this technology is Toyota’s attempt to stay ahead in the green automobile market, hoping to become a serious contender in the ring with Chevrolet and Nissan in the worldwide market.
Our auto shipper companies hope for the best for this technology – every little bit helps, especially when it comes to preserving our environment.
There has been lots of buzz leading up to the release of electric cars. Now, after the Los Angeles Auto Show named the Chevrolet Volt the new electric to watch, every auto company is jumping into the electric arena. We knew about Nissan and their Leaf, but now, welcome Mitsubishi to the electric race.
According to an article with autoweek.com, Mitsubishi formerly announced their intention to produce a plug-in hybrid by the year 2013. A concept car shown at the 2009 Tokyo auto show will be the model for the hybrid. The model was, “…powered by a 1.6-liter four cylinder mated to a hybrid system with two electric motors, one for the front wheels and one for the rear.” The model was said to go for thirty miles before the gas engine kicked in.
Though there is no name yet, “…it will carry the ‘MiEV’ moniker…stands for ‘Mitsubishi innovative electric vehicle.’”
Our auto shipper companies will keep our eyes on the new technology in order to serve our customers better with our own services.
As we have learned during this recession, our economy is a densely woven quilt, each major company a square tied to the other. Our government recognized this pattern when choosing to bail out General Motors with a large loan during the lowest part of the recession cycle. President Barack Obama came into term after Bush gave billions to GM, and decided to give more to the company. A risk that worked out well – General Motors recovered enough to go public in the stock market again in late November.
According to an article on freep.com, “…the U.S. government cutting its stake in GM nearly in half. He said, ‘American taxpayers are now positioned to recover more than my administration invested in GM.’”
While some may object to such large bailouts (government contribution equaled to about $52 billion), about a million jobs would have been lost if GM went under. Now, as the President noted, this decision was a wise one. General Motors is posed to thrive.
Our auto shipper companies look forward to watching General Motors’ success in the following years.
